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April 8th, 2008 @ 10:01
According to IGN, the European Rock Band Instrument Pack will not include an actual copy of the game.
“Unlike the US, which received a Special Edition that includes the game, a Fender Strat guitar, the drum kit and a mic, all for $169 – Europe will only get an Instrument Edition priced £129.99 / 169 Euros, including the three peripherals but not the game – which, bought separately, will set you back £49.99 / 69.99 Euros.” The article says. “So, if you want the proper Rock Band experience, the minimum you’re going to have to shell out is around £180 / 240 Euros.”
The European version of Rock Band will be out on May 23 for 360, will all other versions to follow in the autumn.
Update: Eurogamer’s confirmed it. Oh dear.
By Mike Bowden
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April 8th, 2008 at 10:04 am
Ah, Europe gets taken roughly from behind as usual.
Another reason why I can’t figure out why this game is so popular - price. I mean… how fucking much?!
April 8th, 2008 at 10:07 am
This is pretty much shocking. If that’s true, there’ll be hell to pay.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:09 am
So… hell costs £180, does it? Now that sounds like a better deal.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:10 am
£180 is the price of a Wii, for God’s sake. Madness.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:12 am
Maybe get on the phone to EA and sound them out.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:15 am
Ah well, that gives me an even better reason (than an angry missus) for not getting it. £180 for some not very good gaming peripherals and a game that’s best played in a room full of mates? Hmm I don’t think so…
April 8th, 2008 at 10:20 am
EA have got to pay for all that Take Two somehow!
April 8th, 2008 at 10:29 am
I can’t see why I would even consider paying that much for this. In fact, I never would.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:34 am
Just updated the story. It’s true.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:36 am
Maybe they’ll bundle a tube of lubricant instead?
April 8th, 2008 at 10:39 am
I have a feeling the press event later today is going to be “fun”.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:40 am
/gets on plane
April 8th, 2008 at 10:42 am
To be serious for a minute, this is absolutely astonishing pricing - especially with Microsoft subsidising it to a certain extent. Do they really expect it to do well at that price? I wonder if Microsoft knew how much they were going to charge when they lobbed the bag of cash their way?
April 8th, 2008 at 10:42 am
*buys guitar, learns how to play it, sells music, watches and laughs as 50 million “kids” pretend to “be” me*
April 8th, 2008 at 10:43 am
The response I’m getting off the record at the moment is one of disbelief, to be honest.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:43 am
That price is just… astonishing. £180?
It took me quite a bit of persuading to get my wife to agree to me spending £55 on Guitar Hero III (and that was a bargain) so there’s just no way I’d get £180 worth of plastic guitar, drum kit and microphone through the front door without a row.
Besides, I’d much rather blow that money on an Xbox 360 instead.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:46 am
God, that’s true, isn’t it? Amazon’s selling Premium 360s for £180. I can only believe they assume people are going to buy their own instruments, as opposed to a single person buying the lot. But why so different to the US?
Good gravy.
April 8th, 2008 at 10:48 am
Ouch. I was really really looking forward to this. 169 Euros was an acceptable pricepoint, I really considered getting it. But this… is shocking, to say the least.
Alex
April 8th, 2008 at 10:58 am
I might make my own, using a drum, a guitar, an amp and a microphone. I’ll buy some paper with lines on it, put some dots on the lines, and me and my friends can all follow the dots and make noises in concert. We’ll show you, EA. We can make our own games.
April 8th, 2008 at 11:00 am
“But why so different to the US?”
This is the big question - if EA had charged the US market $300 (plus tax) for the full game and peripherals, I bet it wouldn’t have been nearly the success it has.
April 8th, 2008 at 11:02 am
@patlike:
You know what - I reckon this paper would be perfect:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Standard-Wire-Bound-Manuscript-Paper/dp/0881884995/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1207648887&sr=8-1
April 8th, 2008 at 11:07 am
One of the main reason’s it’s been such a hit in the US is because it’s cheap, surely? They just wouldn’t have gone for it in such numbers otherwise.
April 8th, 2008 at 11:07 am
That paper looks almost exactly like what I had in mind. Mental.
April 8th, 2008 at 11:10 am
It’ll have to come down in price. Europe went nuts over the PS3 launch price and looks how much it is now, a year later.
EA’ll have to learn the hard way.
April 8th, 2008 at 11:11 am
I’m going to enjoy hearing the justification…
April 8th, 2008 at 11:13 am
New 22″ monitor or rockband?
hehehe, like it’s even a choice
April 8th, 2008 at 11:52 am
patlike said:
“I’m going to enjoy hearing the justification…”
Just what Live-blogging was made for.
April 8th, 2008 at 2:35 pm
Haha, this is hilarious.
Gotta love EA.
April 8th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
Erm WTF.
Im sure it was like $180 for the bundle.
Lets convert that shall we, Around £90.
EA are really starting to piss me of with this bullshit.
April 8th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
I’d expect a few choice stories to come out of the press event this afternoon.
April 8th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
That works out at 350 US dollars.
April 8th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
:-S
April 8th, 2008 at 3:54 pm
*speechless*
April 8th, 2008 at 3:55 pm
*not speechless any more*
What a shower of utter bastards!
April 8th, 2008 at 6:52 pm
I really can imagine this price point to be a massive dealbreaker. And by ‘dealbreaker’ I really mean Zero. Market. Tolerance. I’d be really, really surprised if they’re hitting the sixth digit in all europe. But then again I’m not Michael Pachter.
Thinks might look better for some kind Drumkit/Game-Bundle at about 100 Euros, but for the average Guitar-Joe or Microphone-Tina there is no reason NOT to go for any of the Guitar Heroes or Singstars available.
Can you say dead on arrival? It might be a beautiful corpse of a game, but a corpse nonetheless.
really wanted this,
Alex
April 8th, 2008 at 7:49 pm
Same here. I can just see people’s faces in shops when they walk in and see the cost.
April 8th, 2008 at 8:21 pm
Even a few hours on, it’s still utterly ridiculous.
April 8th, 2008 at 8:51 pm
I just placed an order with play.com for £140 all in. Maybe the internet will stop crying hot salty tears of rage now, since that’s what everyone was expecting to pay.